struck by lightning
by ImprisonedByTechnology
Summary: Sneaking around was one of Ginny's best decisions, even if she had to avoid getting angry by not-so-unpleasant comparisons.


The lights in Grimmauld Place were already extinguished when Ginny Weasley decided to sneak around and get to know the house. She knew that George and Fred had been doing so for the past week, and she didn't want second-hand knowledge about the place she was living on; if there was a boggart in a desk she wanted to see it, not to be told about it. Besides, she always loved to see thunderstorms and tonight was specially clouded; if she was lucky (and she considered herself one of the luckiest girls she knew), there would be thunder and lightning tonight.

The first thing she did was to go left from her room and into the mysterious drawing room. Her mother had forbidden her and Ron to enter unless they were with her; it was too dangerous, apparently. However, when Ginny opened the door and looked around with only the light of her wand, she felt disappointed.

There was nothing in the room but an old piano, a hearth and two comfortable looking armchairs. Nothing worth staying.

Ginny was about to leave when a shade entered the room and she gasped, her sudden fear being welcomed by a manly laugh and the smell of chocolate.

"Professor Lupin," she said, her mouth covered by her left hand and her right pointing her wand directly to Remus Lupin's chest. "You scared me."

Her old professor laughed and waved his wand, lighting up the chandeliers around the room.

"I'm sorry," he apologized with an inclination of his head. "I didn't know you would be here. I just wanted to get away from my room, as my ventilation charms are not so good and there is smoke coming in from your brothers' room."

Ginny smirked. Surely Fred and George could wait until daylight to experiment, but knowing her mother it was better if they did it only during the nights. She would take their wands away and have them do chores for the rest of the summer.

"Why don't we seat ourselves and enjoy the smokeless room, then?" she said and went to the armchair against the windows. She wasn't tired, but the full moon would be the next day and she knew the professor would appreciate a bit of rest; he had come to this place to get that, after all.

"They are too creative for their own good," said the professor about her brothers, with a nostalgic smile and a hint of pride. "Do you know of _the_ map?"

Ginny smiled and nodded. "They showed it to me as soon as they came home from Hogwarts, their first year. They were pretty excited about it."

She heard the professor laugh again, watching as a flash of lightning from outside illuminated his amber colored eyes. _So wild_, she thought. A second later, thunder came and Ginny closed her eyes at the rumbling sound. It seemed her wishes came true.

"I'll share a secret with you," said Lupin. "Harry's father, Sirius and I... and Wormtail, too, I suppose... We made it during our fourth year."

There was a quiet pride on his voice and Ginny knew immediately he had been the one with the idea. She was about to praise him on his and his friends' creativity, but another thunder drowned her words.

She remained quiet after that, enjoying the pure and powerful sound of the light ripping through the atmosphere.

"You really like storms, don't you?" Lupin asked with a smile.

Ginny had her eyes closed when she nodded. A flash pierced through her eyelids and prepared her for another thunder.

"When I was a kid, Dad would tell us about what muggles knew of how thunder was made. Naturally, he got it all wrong, but Hermione has corrected my knowledge."

They both laughed at that, and Ginny opened her eyes to find the stunning eyes of her werewolf professor staring at her so intently that she couldn't help but blush. Surprisingly, Lupin laughed again.

"You look so much like Harry's mother when you blush," he said. "The same redness going from your cheeks to your neck."

Suddenly, the professor went silent and Ginny felt awkward. Many times during the week, she had heard Sirius saying how Remus had a secret crush on Lily Evans until she accepted James' affections. Could that mean professor Lupin thought _her _to be beautiful?

"Lily Potter was said to be of an incredible intelligence and matching beauty," Ginny said, daring to test the waters.

Remus nodded.

"She was taller than you. Not as athletic, though," he said, almost loosing himself in the past, not looking at Ginny anymore.

For a small instant, she felt overlooked and got angry. But she had no right to be angry. This was her professor (it didn't matter that her heart beat faster when he was around, or that she found herself wanting to be near him whenever he stayed after meetings) talking about his past, not about her. She would _not get angry_.

"But her hair was crimson, and yours is more like copper."

Ginny blushed again, anger forgotten. This wasn't like her, but the situation was unusual, too. Had it been some other wizard, like Harry or Neville or -hell!- even Draco Malfoy, she would have tried to flirt. But this was Remus Lupin telling her she looked like the woman he loved in secret for a long time.

"I'm sorry, this is highly innapropriate," he muttered suddenly as he stood up. Ginny stood, too.

Neither of them said anything, amber eyes averting Ginny's questioning looks.

"Why?" she asked.

For a moment, Lupin smiled, still looking at the thunderstorm over London.

"You're... You remind me of her too much to be alone with me, Ginny," he said, looking wilder than ever in Ginny's eyes. It was unnerving and yet oddly satisfying to see her professor so conflicted over her similarities to Lily Potter. "I think of her everytime I look at you. I can't get past that likeness."

Ginny's smirk went unseen by Lupin until she was close enough to him that he could not look away anymore.

"You could try, though, couldn't you, professor?"

Remus stared at her for a few seconds, his eyes concentrating on her face. Finally, he smiled.

"Well, your eyes are prettier," he said.

Ginny smiled and pressed her luck as she stepped on her toes and planted a kiss near Remus' lips. With a grin on her mouth and a spark on her eyes, she looked once more towards the windows. The thunderstorm kept going and would not stop soon.

"Goodnight, Remus."


End file.
